Get the know the Satanic Leaf-tailed Gecko (Uroplatus phantasticus) in this second podcast episode!

Welcome back to the Night Forest.

Last time, we talked about where the Satanic Leaf-tailed Geckos or  “phants” live. Tonight, I want to introduce you to one up close.

Close enough to see the serrated edge of that leaf-shaped tail. Close enough to watch those massive eyes tracking movement in the darkness. Close enough to understand why once you see one of these creatures, you can’t stop thinking about them.

This is episode 2 of the Branch Demon Podcast: The Branch Demon Revealed.

I’m looking at a phant right now. About two feet away from me. Close enough that I can see every detail.

Let me describe exactly what I’m seeing.

Size first. This is a full-grown adult, and it’s small. If I were to cup my hands together, it would fit comfortably inside. As an adult, we’re talking about three to four inches total length. This is a tiny animal. The body is robust for their size. But there is also a delicacy to them. Sure, they can launch themselves in mid-air, fall with a plop, and run to cover, but their bones are not dense and their tail can be dropped.

The tail. Let’s talk about the tail because that’s what everyone notices first.

It’s not cylindrical like most lizards. It’s flat. Leaf-shaped. And the edges—on many of them – mostly the males-the edges are serrated. Little chunks taken out seemingly randomly along both sides. They grow like that naturally. Unfortunately, they can drop their tails and really unfortunately, they will not grow back. This tail drop can be if there is any pressure on the tail or, because the universe is cruel, just from a stressful situation. During any episode that I talk about tails I will be duty bound to discourage handling and encourage removal of all sources of stress. They can live long, healthy lives without their tail. But, I am going to give you the best husbandry guidelines I can so you can avoid experiencing that situation. .

The coloration… each phant is different. You will find a wash of browns, greens, rusts, and sometimes even purples. Patterns and cryptic markings, moss splotches, and leaf veins. Every one is unique in their coloration. People have attempted to create reliable morphs. This means mating like colored together to get predictable colors and patterns from the offspring. I am sure this will be part of the community future. At Misty Mountain Phants we have been working on bloodline diversity so creating reliable morphs would be a bit in the future for us. We still have important work to do with bloodline diversity. If you are selecting one as a pet, find one you find attractive and that is the one you should get.

The eyes. When we look at the eyes we can see large tan to red irises with speckles. Phants don’t have eye lids. They have a clear spectacle covering called a brille with the iris and pupil protected within. During the day the pitch black iris is barely a slit and you see the attractive colors of the iris. But during the night, the pupil expands to the full size of the eye to drink in every bit of light. If you view them at night their entire eye becomes a black hole that looks like it feeds on souls. Okay, that is a bit dramatic…but it is endless.

And with those little horns over their eyes they earn their branch demon name. This is just a pointed scale given to these little creatures to cement their legend status.

Let’s talk about males versus females:

The most reliable way to tell: males have visible hemipenal bulges at the base of the tail. They look like two gumballs and are pretty obvious. Females don’t have these. But you do have to be pretty close to see this clearly. And resist the urge to move their tail out of the way with your finger. Wait until they plaster themselves on the clear door of the enclosure and you can study all you want.

There are some colorations that skew towards male and some that skew towards female. I’ll go over them just for historical value so you know what people are talking about when you go into the wilds of the internet. By the way, beware the wilds of the internet. There is some strange juju out there. Best stay home safe with your phant, but, since I know some of you won’t listen and will sneak out for a quick nip on Facebook, here’s the scoop.

Males and females skew towards certain physical characteristics enough that some people state these as ways to tell the sex. Using these, you would be right enough times that you might think this is reliable, but, as a man who is blessed to live life in a phantasticus breeding facility, I can tell you that these characteristics are not reliable. First is the tear drop. Many male phants have a white tear drop shape under their eye. It is precious. It is more common in males than in females, but I have males without and females with.

The next characteristic is the chunks taken out of the tail and the serrated edges. This is most often seen in males where the smooth and clean edges are usually found in females.  You might think you definitely want one, but when you see the other you aren’t sure. They are all so very amazing.

And, you will note the generous use of “often”, “usually”, “skew”, and “many” in this discussion. Just remember that the tear drop and tail shape are true to sex just enough that you could be lulled into thinking those were reliable. But only the hemipenes, present or not, are truly reliable to indicate sex. So, why do the tear drop and tail characteristics persist? Well, the hemipenes take a bit of time to develop so breeders use the tear drop and tail as non-binding clues to give a good guess. The real problem with this is that phants can go eight or more months before developing and identifiable hemipenal bulge.

So, how important these characteristics are depends on how young the baby is you are getting. But, again, unless you are breeding, the sex really isn’t important for getting a pet. Both sexes make equally good pets in terms of appearance, behavior, and care requirements. Your choice is on which individual’s appearance you decided you liked.

PERSONALITY & BEHAVIOR

Movement. This is one of those things you have to see to really understand.

Phants don’t move like typical lizards. They don’t do the quick. Darting. sprint from spot to spot.

Phants are deliberate. Every movement is calculated. They lift one foot, test the next position, commit their weight, then move the next foot. Slow. Methodical. It’s almost like watching tai chi. And, this is expected. Some geckos use speed as a defense. Phants use camouflage as a defense. For camouflage you don’t want to move in a way that will attract attention. So you stay still, hang in an ambush position, creep along methodically, and, if you do have to run or leap, you get back to static position as soon as possible so your cryptic coloration can do its job.

That said, during the night they can be quite active exploring the enclosure and, even leaping around. If you have them in your hand there is a chance they will jump off to escape – so be very careful what is around you that they could hit on the way down. But, if they do jump through the air, they are looking for any branch they can latch onto on the way down and they’ll snag it with one foot and instantly hug as if they were a dead leaf. If you, at any point, were not able to track them, you could very easily miss that dead leaf that wasn’t there before.

It is hard to see them hunting in the wild. Once you bring a headlamp into the equation, you disrupt the entire area. It isn’t like the phelsuma day geckos back in at the lodge that welcome your help in pointing out the insects! Phants see you long before you see them and that just disrupts them.

But, in the Misty Mountain Phants breeding facility, they have gotten used to me in the background when the food comes by. I’ve watched them track prey. The eyes lock on. The body goes completely motionless. You can see the focus. The intensity.

And then when they strike it’s fast…and, hard. They really commit to each strike. You can hear it! Then back to stillness.

The whole thing takes maybe half a second. And, during feeding time you can hear the plop plop plop of phants snagging dinner.

And then they settle back into observe the world or maybe slowly amble through the branches to explore more of their territory.

What happens when they feel threatened?

First line of defense: camouflage and stillness. They drape themselves on a branch or wedge themselves in the tree branches. It’s remarkably effective. It takes a trained eye to pick them out in the wild and I am sure we are missing most of them.

But if that doesn’t work, if you push closer or try to touch them, they have other options.

The tail goes up or the mouth gapes open. It’s a warning. “Back off. I see you. I’m not happy about this.” It’s startling to see this and, it is meant to be!

But here’s the thing: they’re not aggressive. This is all defensive. They’re trying to make you go away, not trying to hurt you. Though, if this doesn’t work or you have a phant in a very spicy mood, they may go for the bite. And it is a scary thing to have this demonic beast viciously maul your finger….until you realize this isn’t hurting at all. Their jaws really aren’t that powerful relative to the typical human finger so the pain is minimal. In fact, the most dangerous thing about a phant biting you is that you could hurt your phant with your surprised reaction to being bitten! They do try to make it fierce so, in a way, we are complimenting them on their performance. The danger is if you fling them in surprise.  You could very easily hurt your phant. Maintain your composure and, at least, pretend that you are scared so you don’t hurt their feelings. Bonus point is you beg for mercy as you quietly put them back in their cage.

These are creatures of the night. Completely.

It is deceiving watching them during the day because they do nothing. And, that is expected. We do nothing while we are sleeping. But, if we are going to develop a captive environment we need to create it around when they are awake and active.

I’ve seen phants in the daytime, and if you didn’t know exactly where to look, you’d walk right past them. They look like part of the branches. Like a…well, you know by now,… Like a dead leaf that got stuck.

This is important to understand because it shapes everything about keeping them in captivity. You’re not going to see your phant “doing stuff” during the day. You’re going to see it being a perfect statue. And that’s exactly what it should be doing.

The magic happens after dark.

At night, they come alive. Not hyperactive or racing around. But *alive*. Alert. Hunting. Exploring. Leaping between the branches. And, this is why you’re going to see me recommending larger enclosures than you might see elsewhere. I don’t want to plan for containment. I want my geckos to have the ability to live with space to move. And, that is what we will be exploring in this podcast series – providing an enriched life.

The Phant Personality

People ask me: “Do phants have personality?”

And the answer is yes. But it’s subtle. It’s not like a dog’s personality or even a leopard gecko’s personality.

It’s in the small things.

Some phants are bolder. More willing to perch in exposed positions. More comfortable with minor disturbances.

Some are extremely cryptic. They hide more. They startle easier. They prefer deep cover.

Some are active hunters, moving around more at night.

Some are ambush specialists, finding one perfect spot and rarely moving from it.

Some will sleep in the same spot every day and, some, who knows where they are from day to day!

And here’s what’s beautiful about this: when you get your phant—and we’re going to talk about choosing your individual in a few episodes—you’re going to discover *your* phant’s personality. Not “phants in general.” But your specific animal’s quirks and preferences and behaviors.

That process of discovery is one of the fun parts of keeping these animals.

I want to share another perspective on personality and individual variation. I am going to bring on my wife, Yvette. Many of you will recognize her as the heart of Misty Mountain Phants. If you inquire about a phant, you are messaging with Yvette.

Bill: I am here with Yvette Strand of Misty Mountain Phants.

Yvette: Hey, hello Bill.

Bill: Now we are talking about Phant personality. And the reason why I wanted to bring you on here is because you have a unique insight, and I’ll explain this to the listeners.

     Yvette has a very hands-on approach to her husbandry. There is no automation going on here. For about the last 10 years, you’ve been completely manual, which means that you have interaction with every fan every day.

Yvette: Sounds a little controlling, doesn’t it?

Bill: A little micromanaging, but the results are undeniable. Yes. The reason why that’s relevant to what we’re talking about right now is because we’re talking about Fant personality. And for the many fans that you have in your breeding facility, what would you say is the basic personality of a fan? And how much variability do you see from fan to fan?

Yvette: Well, I do see personalities in each of them, and they’re not all the same. You know, for instance, some like to have a favorite perch, and you can almost guarantee that we’ll be there almost every time. Some are shyer, whether they are, you know, shy eaters, they don’t go for the guest dough, and they don’t run right in there. They like to make sure there is no one watching. Some love to hide and just kind of be under the foliage. Some like, you know, they like to hang out on the walls. They like to, for funny things, they like to poop on the walls. They like to go in the same spot, whether it’s the enclosure door, you know, some, that is just what they do.

Bill: Do you have any phants that recognize you?

[Yvette: I wouldn’t say they recognize me. I don’t believe they do recognize me.

Bill: Do they learn when dinner time is?

Yvette: Yes. I think some of them do know when dinner time is, especially when the lights are out, you hear all the taps and the lunging, you hear all the night noises, and that’s pretty cool.

Bill: So what are some of your favorite phant behaviors?

Yvette: Some of the personalities and behaviors, and I couldn’t tell you which one it is now, but I know it’s a lot of them is when they wave their tail, like they do it, swooning and fanning like they’re trying to hypnotize their prey.

Bill: Now, when do they use this tail fanning that you’re talking about?

Yvette: Well, the times that I have been lucky enough to catch it is when they were going after a feeder, you know, a cricket or something. And then the other time is the male when he is with his gal and he is just excited. He’s on the hunt. And so those are the two reasons or the two instances where I have seen it. And it’s just one of the coolest things. Wow.

Bill: All right. Thank you very much for your insight on phant personality.

Yvette: Thanks, Bill. You’re welcome.

<Interview concluded>

Keeping phants is not about what they will give to you. There will be no love, affection, or even a glimmer of recognition as to who you are. These are the night dragons you create a world for. You develop an environment and unleash them upon it. And, you observe. You enjoy having a beautiful slice of the world knowing that here, there be a dragon lurking in the shadows.

They exist on their own timeline. They’re not here to entertain you. They’re not going to perform. They’re going to be exactly what they are: a small piece of Madagascar’s night forest, living its life whether you’re watching or not.

And for some people, that’s absolutely perfect.

That either draws you in completely… or makes you realize this isn’t your creature.

This podcast is not here to convince you to get a phant. It is here to present what they are. Being certain a phant is for you is just as valuable as deciding that this really isn’t what you are looking for – before you invest in getting one. This is doing your research and being sure in your direction. I know you have the initial excitement of this otherworldly creature, but they can live over ten years. It is worth contemplating it over a good night’s sleep, two hot showers, and a dog walk. Make sure this is the right thing for you. If not, no shame! Mission accomplished. You researched and came to a mature conclusion. If, on the other hand, a phant is right for you, well, we have soooo much more to talk about!

And we are going to hit that nail squarely on the head in the next two episodes. We need to talk about what it actually means to keep a phant. What’s it really like to keep one of these as a pet? Not just the mechanics—the cages and the food and the misting. But the relationship. The reality. What is it you’re actually signing up for?

Let’s find out if a phant really is the experience for you.

Also remember that we have monthly email newsletter on husbandry and availability that you can sign-up for on branchdemon dot com, and the first Sunday of the month Yvette and I gather for a live session on the Misty Mountain Phants YouTube channel to talk phants! Come hang out with other phant lovers or ask what ever questions you might have about caring for these wonderful geckos.

My name is Bill Strand. This is the Branch Demon Podcast. I’ll see you next time.